Skip-dump.



c. L. LA'WTON.

SKIP DUMP.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 16, 1915 1,151,955. Patented Aug. 31,1915.

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C. L. LAWTON.

SKIP DUMP.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 16, 1915. 1,151,955. 1 Patented Aug. 31,1915.

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pnr'rn STATES PATENT OFFICE. T

CHARLES L. LAwron, or HANCOCK, MICHIGAN.

SKIP-DUMP.

Application filed April 16, 1915. eel-1am. 21,1773.v

, than loose stone and fills the voids therein.

The sand and other substances have been delivered to the stopes by sluices, vcompressed air or skips, but the two-first mentioned modes are objectionable for various reasons, and much difficulty has been experienced with the skips because no means was available whereby they could be properly handled to meet all conditions under which it was desired to use them. v e p f y The present invention relates to a device so arranged that the skip may, if desired,

. be filled with sand at the surface, then lowered and duinpedat any preferred place without stopping, then filled with poor rock at the point where the shaft is being excavated, then elevated to the place previously referredto and dumped, then elevated further and filled with rich ore and finally,re

turned to the surface. Besides the cycle of Y operationsreferred to,the device is capable of other modes of use, as will be apparent from the description. I

Inthe drawings, Figure 1 is a part-side view, part-section of an inclined shaft showing the relationship of the dump to a chute or' storage space which is to be filled: Fig.

2 is a diagrammatic side view showingthe skip in dumping position. Fig. 3 1s a section on the line 33 of Fig. 2. ,Fig. 4 1s a view fromthe upper end of the dump, the

movable rail sections being in lowered position. Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view on the line'55 of Fig. 1, parts being broken away. In the embodiment of my invention A j shown, 1 indicates an inclined shaft, 2 a

sand chute or storage bin from which the material is taken to a stope (not shown) in;

any preferred manner, and 3 designates another passage through which material may I be delivered to the shaft byimeans of chutes Specification of Letters-Patent.

PatentedAug, 31, 1915.

. or other devices shown). The shaft has supported therein in any desired manner the'usual trackrunners 4L and track rails 5, and mountedto travelon the track is a skip- 6 having front wheelsB and rear wheels 9, the tread of the latter being of wider'gage than the former. This skip is hauled in theshaft by a bail 10' (not shownin Fig. 1),

, pivoted thereto atll nearits center of grave ity, and the usual cable 12, and is provided near the upperside of its rearend with the pro ectlng rollers or studs 13, the'purpose of which is hereinafter pointed out.

Rising from therunners at points adja cent the entrance to the stope or sand chute 2 are the uprights 16,,the 1Pper ends of whichmay engage the roof of the shaft. These uprights are joined and braced by timbers orguide rails comprising an upper central member 18parallel to the rails 5, and the end members19 inclined in respect thereto. the .latterof which terminate a distance above the rails greater than the diameter of the wheels'of the skip, and prefer ably have their; lowerfaces curved away fromthe tracks 5, as indicated at 20. The timbers 18 may be supplemented by similar timbers 21, theouterends of which project beyond the correspondingends of the timbers l8 and may be connected thereto by fillers .22. These: timbers are preferably faced by the metal strips 23 (Fig. 3) and arev curved downwardly toward the tracks at each end as indicated at 24, for a purpose that will be pointed out later. Also ioining the uprights 16 aretimbers comprising the central members 25 (preferably parallel to the members 18) and the end members 26 that maybe substantially parallelto the lower edges ofthe corresponding members l9 and. which likewise terminate 'a distance above the-rails greater than thediameter ofthe wheels: on the skip. The timbers 25,26-may be faced with metal strips 28 (Fig.3), and the postsmay be lined and joined between the timbers 1819 and 25 26 by linings 29 (Figs. 1- and 3) that maybe of betal or, atleast, faced with metal These linings preferably extend a,

downwardly to the runners 4.

Arranged to alinewith the lower-ends of the timbers 26 are the rail sections '30 that are mounted .on pivots 31 in the brackets 32,

bolted or otherwise secured to thej'adja'cent uprights 16. These railsections may have integrally formed therewith the counters trolledby the following mechanism:Piv-

oted on a bracket 85 carried'by'a'platform 36 (the deck 38 of which may be slotted at -39, liig.l) is a'l'ever {40, "from which a link ll extends to a rocker'42 pivotally mounted on the platform att3, The rocker may be provided with thecounterpoise 44c, and a linker) connects itto' an arm 46 rigid with a "crossshaft 4L8 mountedin brackets 49 onthe track structure. Also *rigid with. the crossshaft at each side. is atwo-armed lever 50, to onearm of'each 'ofwhich'is pivoted a link 51 that issimilarlyfionnected to the corresponding counterpoise 33 of the lower rail Y section 30. e The other arms of thelevers are pivotally connected to links 52 thatare, in turn, p' votally' secured to the counterpoises ofthe'upper rail'sections. V

Operation: The rail sections 30 and controlling parts are normally held in the posi tion shown in Fig. lf by the counterpoises 33 and l, andthe skip may pass throughthe dump in either direction, without being affected thereby in any manner, the curved faces 20 insuring aready entrance thereto. When, however, it is desired to dump sand or other material that is {being lowered from thesurface into the entrance to 'the stope, an attendant standing onthe platform 36 graspsthe leverO and overcomes the effect ofthe counterpoises 3344,thus lowering therail sections- 30 intotheposition shown inFig. 2. The skip or bucket descending, its broad-tread or broad-gaged rear wheels 9 engage the sections 30, while the narrower front wheels 8 remain on the track 5. Asa result the skipor bucket'is tilted (Fig. 2) and the material" is discharged from its open front 1 end, after which a further lowering '55 and prevent lateral'niovement case they of the skip causesit to assume its former IGlfltlOllliO. the track. Were no means provided to prevent it, the skip might overturn and remain so asthe bucket'is lowered, but itheiroller 13 is "positioned toscontact withthe metal strip 23611 the timber'21 and limit the clockwise movement of the skip (Fig; 2). The linings 29 guide the wheels 9 lift from the timbers 18 duringthe tilting action. Precisely the same operation'tak'es place when thebuckt is to be dumpedin its rising movement, that is, after being filled with poor rock at a lower level. Itfmay thenbe: filled with rich rock and transported to I the surface.

The deyice is obviously of special value when applied for mining purposes, but it is modified without departing from the spirit of the invention. 1 I do not, therefore, wish to be limited otherwise than as indicated in the subjoined claims.

I claim:

1. Material handling mechanism comprising a track formed of parallel spaced rails, a bucket mounted to travel back and forth thereon, said bucket including front and rear sets of supporting wheels, one set of wheels being of broader tread than the other, bucket dumping means along the track, said dumping means including a central track section spaced from and above the track, and switch sections, one pivoted at each end of the central track section, the free ends of said switch sections being movable toward and from the track and being arranged-to intercept the wheels of wider tread when in one position whereby the bucket, upon entering the dump from either direction, is first caused to tilt about the axis of the wheels of the lesser tread and to thereafter return to its previous relation to the track as it passes off the dumping means onto the track in its continued movement in the same direction, the switch sections, when in another position, allowing the bucket to pass freely through the dumping means, means for normally holding the switch sections in one position, a lever, and means for connecting'the lever to both of the sections wherebythey may be simultaneously moved to the other position.

- 2. Material handling mechanism comprising a track formed of parallel spaced rails, a bucket mounted tot-revel back and forth thereon, said bucket including front and rear sets of supporting wheels, one setof wheels being of broader tread than-the other, bucket dumping means along the track, said dumpits previous relation to thetrack as it passes off the dumping means onto the track in its continued movement in the same direct on, the switch sections, when in another position, allowing the bucket to pass freely through the dumping means, means for normally holding the switch sections in the last named position, means for moving them to the first named position at will,-anda guide rail substantially parallel to and'located above the central track section a distance slightly greater than the diameter of the wheels of wider tread, whereby said wheels are prevented from being thrown OK the central track section.

3. Material handling mechanism comprising a track formed of parallel spaced rails, a bucket mounted to travel back and forth thereon, said bucket including front and rear sets of supporting wheels, one set of wheels being of broader tread than the other,

bucket dumping means along the track, said dumping means including a central track section substantially parallel to the track, inclined sections at the ends of the central.

track in its continued movement in the same.

direction, the switch sections, when in another position, allowing the bucket to pass freely through the dumping means, means for normally holding the switch sections in one position, means for moving them to the other position at will, and a guide rail having a central section and end sections,-substantially parallel, respectively, to the central and end track sections of the bucket dumping means and located above the said track sections a distancegslightly greater than the diameter of the wheels of wider tread, whereby said wheels are prevented from being thrown from said track'sections.

4. Material handling mechanism including an inclined track, a bucket mounted to travel back and forth thereon, said bucket including front and rear supporting wheels, bucket-dumping means along the track, said dumping means including members movable in respect to the track and means for moving the members, and being arranged, when the members are in one position, to cause the bucket to tilt about the axis of one of the wheels as it passes along the track in either direction, and, when in another position, to

allow the bucket to pass freely along the track, and means for limiting the tilting movement of the bucket whereby it is prevented from accidentally overturning.

5. Material handling mechanism includ-' ing an inclined track, a bucket mounted to travel back and forth thereon, said bucket including front and rear supporting wheels, bucket-dumping means along the track, said dumping means including members movable in respect to the track and means for moving the members, and being arranged, when the members are in one position, to cause the bucket to tilt about the axis of one of the wheelsas it passes along the track in either direction, and,.when in another position,to allow the bucket to pass freely along the track, and means for limiting the tilting movement of the bucket whereby it is prevented from accidentally overturning, said limiting means including a track section on the dumping means and a projection on the bucket arranged to contact with the track as i section as the bucket 'moves through the dumping means. 7 I

6. Material handling mechanism including an inclined track, a bucket mounted to travel back and forth thereon, said bucket .inoludingfront and rear sets of supporting wheels, the width of tread of the front wheels being different than that of the rear wheels, bucket-dumping means along the track, said dumping means including a fixed track section above'the track, and a movable track section at one end of the fixed track section, said movable track section, when in one position, allowing the bucketto pass by the dumping means without beingafi'ected thereby,'and when in another position, being arranged to guide one set of the bucketsupporting wheels from the track to the fixed track section and to permit the other set of wheels to pass along the track, whereby the bucket is tilted about the last-named wheels to discharge its contents, means for limiting the tilting movement of the bucket, said means including a projection on the bucket and a track section on the dumping means. e

In testimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of two subscribing witmesses.

CHARLES L. LAWTON.

\Vitnesscs:

R. D. BLAOHLUM, T. C. DE SOLLAR.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

